Year: 2017

Day 38: Painted Pebbles

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As we head towards the end of 2017, it’s a time when many will reflect on the year gone by and look to the year ahead. It’s the busiest season of the year with so much going on every single day – we know that this time of year can be particularly daunting for people living with mental illness, in its many forms. Fortunately, there is help out there for anyone who needs support. 

On Day 38 of #100DaysNoTV we left some festive-themed painted pebbles around our little city of Ely. These are no ordinary pebbles; we hope they will help to spread the word about a wonderful community project, Talking FreELY.

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Day 37: Christmas Wreaths

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To get you in the Christmas mood, you’d find it hard to beat an afternoon making a wreath while sipping mulled wine, eating mince pies, all to the background singing of a live choir. On Day 37 of #100DaysNoTV, I joined a Mummas & More wreath-making workshop at Ely Cathedral! 🙂 

Christmas wreaths seem to have gained in popularity over recent years and we had our first ever wreath last year. It was a bit sorry looking; I bought it on a whim from a garden centre in mid-December, and it was definitely past its best! However, it planted a seed in my (not-very-creative) mind – I wanted to make one of my own the following year. I just had to figure out how!

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Food: Pint Shop

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Pint Shop, in the very heart of Cambridge, will soon be celebrating its 4th birthday. Feeling that it would benefit from some sprucing up, the owners not only refreshed the paintwork, but also altered the layout to create two new dining rooms. To celebrate their revamp and new seasonal menu, they held a press & bloggers tasting lunch.

Unable to attend on the day, we were invited to dine on another occasion, and having never experienced their food (but hearing wonderful things about it), we were delighted to accept.

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Day 35: FoodCycle Cambridge

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I have vivid memories of being a young girl growing up in the affluent city of Cambridge, not being able to understand why there were so many people sleeping rough, barely surviving. It didn’t seem right or fair, and that helpless feeling stays with me today. That childhood memory, and what I’ve subsequently learned about the plight of the homeless and the disadvantaged, along with an inherent aversion to food waste, compelled me to attend my first FoodCycle session in 2012. 

After a break from volunteering while our children were very young, I rejoined the team in September 2017 for Day 35 of #100DaysNoTV.

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Day 34: Blackberry Sorbet

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If there is one welcome sign that summer is getting closer to its end, it’s the abundance of ripening blackberries in the hedgerows. It has become a family tradition to go out and forage, and this year we decided to make something new with our bumper crop.

We’ve owned an ice cream maker for a few years, but it stayed unloved in its box. It was about time it had some use. On Day 34 of #100DaysNoTV we made fresh blackberry sorbet.

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Day 33: My First Sportive

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In October 2016, Rob took part in his first organised cycling event: the Palace to Palace ride in aid of The Prince’s Trust. He enjoyed it so much that cycling has become a hobby of his, and he encouraged me to get a new road bike so we could go cycling together. With slight trepidation, I agreed and I bought the little beauty below. 

Fast forward nine months to July 2017 and my first mass participation cycling event. Day 33 of #100DaysNoTV sees me take part in my first Women on Wheels charity ride through Suffolk.

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Sea Life Great Yarmouth

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As a family, we’ve been to Sea Life once before. It was the one in Birmingham – just about as far from the sea as you can get in the UK! 🙂 Being so young then (two & four), the boys don’t remember much about that visit. They are four & six now, and we were so pleased to be invited to visit and review Sea Life Great Yarmouth during the May half-term holiday.

Great Yarmouth is a bustling seaside resort in Norfolk, about 20 miles east of Norwich. A traditional English seaside destination, the seafront is home to numerous amusement arcades, two piers, many restaurants and a pleasure beach with fairground rides, go-karts, etc.

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BeWILDerwood – 10th Birthday

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Set in a woodland, close enough to civilisation, yet far enough away to feel in its own little world, BeWILDerwood is an award-winning family destination in the very beautiful heart of Norfolk. Celebrating their 10th birthday, they held a special press event, to which we were absolutely delighted to be invited. And, it fell at the beginning of an already booked half-term break in Norfolk. Luck like this doesn’t normally fall our way! 🙂

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Day 32: Private Dining at Home

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Before we were parents, Rob and I used to enjoy holding dinner parties at home. Back then, we totally took it for granted. As other parents of young children might agree, a grown-up evening without interruption, and without you feeling so tired you’d fall asleep on your plate, can feel like a thing of the distant past.

After talking with a group of mummies (we’d met at my “Mummas & More” bloggers talk ) about getting together, we started considering the idea of a dinner party where we all contribute a dish. However, in the end we decided to invite a chef to do all the cooking (and clearing up!) for us. 🙂 On Day 32 of #100DaysNoTV we had a restaurant experience at home! 

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